Story Telling: Oral Skills

[cacian]

do you story tell orally without prior planning and having to recourse to no pen and paper? can you tell a story at the top of your head? the importance of aural conversation I consider crucial if we are to write fully and comfortably.

how good are your ORAL skills in other words?

[hannah_arendt]

I prefer to write a text. I am not god at retelling something orally

[Lokasenna]

I love storytelling - not only do I enjoy the theatricality of it, but I am interested in it from an academic point of view - after all, all the works I studied originated as oral poetry and stories. At the museum where I volunteer, I often lurk in the reconsructed Anglo-Saxon mead hall, encouraging vistors to gather round the fire-pit and listen to stories. It's not only the kids that become rapidly enthralled - the adults quickly fall under the mesmeric spell of storytelling. It really is a fascinating and powerful effect.

[hannah_arendt]

I have been always afraid of any performances. During my studies I decided to fight with my shiness and started to participate in drama club. I am a little bit less shy now. I envy you Lokasenna of this ability

[cafolini]

For me, listening to people and myself talk is telling the story.

[cacian]

For me, listening to people and myself talk is telling the story.

a give and take situation I l like your idea

[Jassy Melson]

Oral storytelling is important because it's closely related to dialogue. Most stories contain dialogue, and the best way to have dialogue is to make it like everyday one-on-one conversation.

[stlukesguild]

I've been told on more than one occasion that I missed my calling... that I'm a natural story-teller and should have been an actor... or a comedian. I do tend to be far more theatrical, employing horrible accents and various voices... and I tend to have a far more outrageous and dark sense of humor than I do when I write. As a writer I am afforded the luxury of weighing my words... of seeking just the right word or turn of phrase. Personally, I'm not certain just how well-linked one's writing ability is to one's ability as a speaker. I doubt that Shakespeare spoke the way he wrote... and surely hope James Joyce didn't... although with enough Guinness he just might have.

By the way... I wonder how many of the 190 (at this time) individuals that opened this thread but didn't bother to respond imagined that it involved something far more... prurient?

[mona amon]

Totally missed that, stlukes. Having a pure and innocent mind, I had to scroll back to the thread heading to see what you meant.

As for story telling, that's an art, and only some people have the talent. Mom used to be very good at it, but I can't tell a story to save my life.

[synodbio]

Oral story telling requires good tactics and knack. As for me concerned its difficult to express without pen and paper.

[mortalterror]

I've been told on more than one occasion that I missed my calling... as a comedian.

Do they just say that when they see your art or other times too?

[cacian]

Oral story telling requires good tactics and knack. As for me concerned its difficult to express without pen and paper.

I am not so sure I think we are all able to concoct a story at the top of our head without reaching out the pen paper and dictionary if we are let.
The way we are raised is that we are first read books then told to read them then at school told to read them again and study them which means we are missing out big time on our ability to express aural conversation using imagination. I think that we orator and therefore more then capable to conversing something out using our ability to think away from pen and paper. It Is just a question of when and how we are going to come to realise that aural skills are extremely important in that they facilitate a speedier steadier mechanism to writing. It is something we definitely must look into if not at least encourage at home.